title: High- and low-purity glycerine supplementation to dairy cows in early lactation: effects on silage intake, milk production and metabolism.
abstract: This study evaluated the effects of supplemental low- and high-purity glycerine on silage intake, milk yield and composition, plasma metabolites and body condition score (BCS) in dairy cows. A total of 42 cows of the Swedish Red Breed, housed in individual tie stalls, were fed 0.25 kg of low- or high-purity glycerine on top of concentrate, twice daily, during the first 4 weeks of lactation. One-third of the cows acted as controls, receiving no glycerine. Silage was fed for ad libitum intake and concentrate was fed at restricted level of intake, about 6 kg/day for primiparous cows and 7 kg/day for multiparous cows. Feed refusals were weighed daily. Cows were milked twice daily, milk yield was recorded on four occasions per week and milk samples were collected simultaneously. Blood samples were drawn from the coccygeal vessel once a week. Low- and high-purity glycerine had no effect on silage or total dry matter intake (P = 0.38 and P = 0.75, respectively) or on BCS (P = 0.45). Cows fed high-purity glycerine tended to have higher milk yield than control cows (P = 0.06). Milk composition tended to differ among treatments. No main effects of treatment on concentration of glycerine (P = 0.44), glucose (P = 0.78), insulin (P = 0.33), non-esterified fatty acids (P = 0.33) and β-hydroxybutyrate (P = 0.15) in plasma. These data indicate that high-purity glycerine has the potential to increase milk yield, as well as enhance the milk protein concentration and milk fat + protein yield.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Nutrition and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Kungsängen Research Centre, SE-753 23, Uppsala, Sweden. anna.omazic@slu.se
authors.forename: A Werner
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Omazic
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tråvén
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bertilsson
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Holtenius
mesh_terms: D020155:3-Hydroxybutyric Acid / Q000097:blood; D000818:Animals; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D001824:Body Constitution / Q000187:drug effects; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002417:Cattle; D003612:Dairying / Q000379:methods*; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D004435:Eating / Q000187:drug effects*; D004734:Energy Metabolism / Q000187:drug effects*; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D005990:Glycerol / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood; D007774:Lactation / Q000502:physiology*; D008892:Milk / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D012820:Silage
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D005227:Fatty Acids; D007328:Insulin; D005990:Glycerol; D020155:3-Hydroxybutyric Acid